Bengaluru rains: Pumps stretched to limit, residents strain to drain water out

Residents in many apartments still struggling to drain out floodwaters

Almost four days after their residential complexes got flooded, many Bengalureans are yet to get water pumped out from the premises. Only after the water is drained can they enter their homes, assess the damage and take up repair works.

DH visited Sarjapur, Yamalur and neighbouring areas where residents said the losses could run into lakhs.

Anees Ahmed, resident and management committee member at the upscale Epsilon Residential Villas in Yamalur, said it might take 10-15 more days to drain water out if work continues at the same pace.

Currently, residents and the association together have installed 10 to 12 pumps in addition to those of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. "The collective capacity of all pumps is only 100 to 150 HP. To drain out water in one or two days, we need a capacity of 500-1,000 HP," he said.

Home Minister Araga Jnanendra visited the apartment on Thursday and promised to do his best, but has not offered specific solutions, Ahmed said. "We are trying to procure more pumps from Coimbatore, Hyderabad, etc." Around 80 out of the 100 houses here are flooded, at levels ranging from 1 ft to 8 ft. Residents are living in hotels or relatives' homes.

Meanwhile, fire department officials are worried that their equipment may get damaged. "We have been pumping water continuously, with only 10-minute breaks in between for the machines to cool down," said an official, who believes the exercise should be the responsibility of the BBMP, and not the fire department.

"Around 30 department vehicles — some from outside Bengaluru — are being used to pump out water in East Bengaluru. Our machines are supposed to be used for firefighting. We help in the evacuation of people, which has been done here already. The BBMP already has de-watering pumps and they have the funds to procure more if needed," he said.

At Countryside Layout along Sarjapur Road, government agencies responded only after residents made 200 to 300 calls, said Jei Narayanan, secretary of the residents' association. The layout has 40 houses. Though the houses were flooded on Sunday night, help arrived only on Wednesday morning.

"From Monday evening, we have been calling authorities and tagging politicians on social media. Initially, they supported larger, more influential layouts. After much pleading and shouting, we got one pump from the fire department on Wednesday. Another came on Thursday," said Jei.

The residents have been draining out water using their own pumps since Monday night. "Deploying our two pumps costs us Rs 2,500 per hour," said Jei.

The process, however, has been smoother at the Rainbow Drive Layout nearby, said residents. The fire department left the layout on Thursday noon after much of the floodwater was cleared. Yet, nearly 200 metres of road leading up to the front gate was flooded, which the apartment association was pumping out. Power is yet to be restored in about 25 houses that were heavily damaged in the floods. Bescom has ensured safe power supply in the remaining households.

At Epsilon and Countryside Layout, it will be a much longer process which can start only after the water gets drained out.

Siddaramaiah, Jnanendra visit affected areas

Home Minister Araga Jnanendra visited flood-hit areas in the city and praised the efforts of various departments in providing relief.

"I congratulate the fire department, State Disaster Response Force and the police who have been working day and night. Five hundred staff under home department have been deployed in the city, and 1,100 residents have been rescued. Floodwaters remain in only 15-20% areas now, and those will be cleared in 1-2 days," he said.

Opposition leader Siddaramaiah visited a flooded area on Thursday morning. He ventured into the floodwaters on a rescue boat and took a round of the inundated area.